All That Jazz
by Devianta
Summary: Sam and Tucker go away on vacation leaving Danny to carry the weight of his ghost fighting job. Feeling sorry for him, Jazz decides to try to help. On hiatus
1. Intro

All That Jazz

Intro

I admit, sometimes a big sister should just keep her nose out of her brother's business. However, there are times when it's okay to be nosy. For example, my little brother, Danny, has a bit of a weight on his shoulders.

Cue flashback:

"Ahhhh!!!!!" Danny fell out of the sky and landed on his back. An old man in overalls who was balding hovered in midair above him. He held a pitchfork in his right hand. He looked down at his fallen foe with an air of condescension. The boy on the ground looked up at the evil ghost. His lip curled into a sneer. He was getting sick of Farmer Joe coming here and wreaking havoc with the plant and animal life. This was the second time this week!

"Well, it looks youngster like you just ain't up to snuff, huh?" The ghost cackled.

"Well, it looks old man like you just forgot about my friends!"

Sam and Tucker, Danny's two best friends, jumped out from behind a building and quickly sucked up the pitchfork-loving ghost into the thermos. Danny stood up and walked over to his friends.

A ring of light appeared around Danny's waist, split into two, and returned him to his human form.

End Flashback

Yeah, my brother is a ghost. Well, actually he's half ghost, half human. There was an accident about a year ago that transformed him into a ghost- fighting, town- saving, stressed out teen hero known to the public as Danny Phantom. Ever since then he has been protecting the town from rogue ghosts, some of whom want to take over the world. That's a lot of stress on the shoulders of a fourteen year old. Which brings us to today's problem.

Lately, Danny has found his double life to be more of a weight than usual. It's summer. You would think this would make things better for him but it hasn't. Sam and Tucker are away on vacation. That leaves Danny here almost completely alone to fight the ghosts that plague our town. Like I said, almost alone. There's still me, his sister, but I'm a reserved member of the team. There is a reason for that.

Flashback:

I stood on a box in a warehouse and aimed at the thermos at the "Crate Creep". Danny floated about a foot away from my target. He was about to toss the ghost into my line of fire however, I lost my balance. My finger grazed the capture button on the thermos. Danny sighed, looking extremely annoyed, as the light of the thermos pulled him in.

Whoops.

End Flashback

Ever since then I have covered for him so that mom and dad, both ghost hunters, would never discover his secret. I have provided support for him when he is down. I have helped him when he is hurt and I make sure he gets his homework done on time during the school year. Other than that I have remained out his ghost hunting life. Fighting the ghosts wasn't entirely my place. I did it when I had to, but I tried to just let Danny handle it.

This was one of those times when I would have to get involved. Without Sam and Tucker there to back him up things could get messy, too messy.


	2. Noisy Night

A/N: Here is the second chapter. Yes, the chapter will get longer and there will be more action. Right now I'm trying to emphasize the trauma both of them are going through. So, yeah, it's not very exciting. There will be Danny hurting in the future. There will be fluffy moments in the future. Stay tuned. Anyway, enjoy the short chapter. Please R&R, tell me what you think. Let the show continue.

* * *

Noisy Night

It was around midnight when a heard a loud thud come from my brother's room. This signaled his return home. A groan followed the thud telling me that he had been fighting the better part of the day. A gasp, a hiss, and a series of rasping coughs told me he was hurt and tired out worse than usual.

A sigh escaped me as I got out of bed, picked up the first aid hit, and walked into Danny's room. He was curled up on his bed in human form, a rarity these days. With the amount of ghost activity this summer I was waiting for the day where Danny would transform into Phantom permanently. I hope that day never comes. I sat down on his bed and pulled gauze, scissors, and disinfectant from the kit. I rolled him over onto his back. He pushed his shirt up enough for me to see the wound. It was a nasty one.

I worked in silence. My hands patted the disinfectant filled cotton balls over the bloody scrapes, cuts, and gashes on my brother's stomach, arms, legs, back, neck, and one on his face. Then, my hands picked up the gauze and scissors. They cut the gauze and wrapped up my brother's broken body. They took a band aide out of the kit and placed it on the cut that stretch across my brother's nose. They opened the drawer where my brother kept his pajamas, pulled out his favorite pair, and placed them on his bed next to him. My feet carried me into the bathroom. My hands pulled out a wash cloth, turned on the water, and soaked the cloth in the freezing liquid. My fist knocked on my brother's door. My ears heard him moan the words "come in". My hand placed the cool cloth on his forehead. It smoothed his hair down as he murmured the word "thanks". My feet brought me back to my own room after I told him good night.

I lied down and tried to fall asleep but a film played on the inside of my eyelids. Scenes of the battle that I never saw but could imagine played over and over again. I watched as Danny fell from the sky. I watched as he hit the ground. I saw his opponent hit him over and over until he managed to escape, gasping in pain, and capture his tormentor. I could see him clutching his bleeding side. I glimpsed the ghoulish moment when yet another evil ghost slapped him with their clawed hands, leaving a bloody streak on his face. I then saw the monster dodge around him while he recovered and delivered yet another blow, this time to his back. These scenes replayed themselves until reality and nightmare bled together into a distorted version of our lives. I barely realized my brother had screamed in his sleep, calling for help.

When I finally recognized this, I stumbled again into my brother's room and set on the edge of his bed. He twisted and turned, kicking at an imagined enemy. His hands reached out in front of him, striking at his dreamed foe. He screamed. He yelled. He cried.

I shook him gently. After a while he woke up. His sapphire eyes stared at me for a moment before he recognized me as his sister. I told him it was just a dream. He told me it was a nightmare. I asked him if he wanted to talk about it. He told me it was nothing. I asked him if he was sure that it was just nothing. To me it sounded like it was something. He answered with an "I'll be okay". I told him I was there for him should he need me. He told me good night and I replied with the same. I closed the door behind me and returned to my room. It was three thirteen in the morning. It had been a noisy night, but the morning would be better.


	3. Summer Blues

Summer Blues

With the morning sun came my morning responsibilities. I got out of bed and showered. Then, I got dressed and headed downstairs. I started breakfast before running back upstairs to get my brother up. I knocked on his door. I could hear him groaning his usual "go away" inside. That didn't deter me. I knocked harder.

"Danny, get up. It's Friday. Don't be such a wuss." Then, quieter, I asked, "Are you okay? Do you need help?"

I heard the bed sheets rustle as he pushed himself out of bed. A hiss of pain told me that he was feeling the after effects of last night's battles. A whimper was all I needed to hear to know that he needed my assistance. I quietly opened the door and slipped inside. He was sitting on the edge of his bed clutching his arm. His face looked calm but I knew that was a mask. He was in a great deal of a pain.

"How much does it hurt?"

"A lot," he said so softly I could barely hear it. I knew how much he hated to admit this. He wanted to look strong, brave, like there was no reason for anyone to worry about him. That was one of his fears, that people would worry. He didn't want to be a burden for anyone.

"Let me see," I said as I sat down next to him. He moved his hand and I unwrapped the bandage. Underneath lay a long bloody gash that started at his shoulder and ran down to just above his elbow. I grimaced as I looked at it.

"It's okay. I'm fine. You don't need to worry," he automatically said when he saw my expression.

"Danny, I can't help but worry. I'll worry no matter what because I'm your sister. I care about you. Mom and dad would worry too if they knew what you were doing."

"I don't want you to worry. I'll be okay."

"I know you'll be okay," I pulled the medical kit out from under the bed. I began cleaning the gash again and redressing it. "But I still worry. If it were me defending the town would you worry?"

"Of course I would worry, Jazz!"

"Then don't tell me not to."

He didn't say anything though I could tell he wanted to. He looked away as I finished. He took his shirt off knowing I needed to clean and redress the ones on his back and stomach. As I pulled the gauze off, I saw that those ones were worse. The one on his back ran the course of his spine, starting between his shoulder blades and ending just above his waist (thankfully). The one on his stomach was short but deep. That one was just below his ribcage.

They were painful to clean too, for both of us. I grimaced every time I heard him gasp, hiss, or if I saw him clench his teeth. I hated this. I didn't want to hurt him but I knew it was necessary. If I didn't do this his wounds could get infected and end up causing him greater pain. True he healed faster than normal humans thanks to his ghost half, but that power only extended so far. I didn't want to learn what its limit was.

After about twenty minutes, I was done. Danny began picking out his clothes for today.

"Thanks, Jazz."

"No problem. You need anything else?"

"Just some pain killers."

"Sure," I said as I closed the door behind me. I walked into the bathroom and opened the cabinet underneath the sink. I took out a couple of pills and filled a paper cup up with water.

The battles were getting worse for him, I could tell. When Sam and Tucker were here Danny didn't get nearly as many wounds. He got scratches and the occasional gash but that was it. Oh, and he got bruises. Those were the most frequent. Other than that he was fine. But now, the injuries were getting worse and worse. I know it's because he's doing this all alone. He has no one to back him up. He's going out at night all alone and fighting these ghosts who some times like to gang up on him. I just wish there was something more I could do to help him.

The only other thing I could do was go out with him. I did once and it turned out horribly. I was more of a hindrance than a help. But maybe it'll be different this time. Maybe I'll be able to do better. He's my little brother and I'm responsible for him. I can't let him keep going on like this. I will just have to learn how to be a good ghost hunter. Danny needs someone on his side.

I put on my most determined face and went back to his room. I handed him the pills and the water. He took them. Then he noticed my expression.

"What's up?"

"Danny, I need to talk to you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Look, I know you don't want me to worry but I can't help it. You're my little brother…"

"Jazz, I'm not that little. I can defend myself."

"I know. It's just that you're coming home with more injuries than ever. I'm concerned. Without Sam and Tucker here to help you have to go out there on your own. You have no one to back you up and I think it's becoming a problem. Which is why I want to help. I want to go out ghost fighting with you."

"Jazz, we have been through this before. Remember the last time you tried to help. The only ghost we caught was me, three times!"

"I know but I can learn! Danny, I want to help you more than what I am doing right now. I can't bear to see you come home like this every night. What if you don't even come home one night? I know those ghosts are beginning to work together. They're gaining up on you. One day it might be too much. I want to see if I can't prevent that from happening. I know I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. I wouldn't be able to live knowing that you were gone and I could have done something to prevent that. Please, Danny. Please think about it."

Danny sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He looked at me and nodded.

"I'll think about it. Thanks, Jazz. I know that you want to help and I appreciate that but… I don't want to get sucked into the thermos again."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that. I can learn though. You know that."

"I know. That's why I'm considering it. I'll think about it and tell you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay."


End file.
